Water Lily, also known as the Lotus Flower

I wanted to take a moment to introduce you to my real life, flesh and blood friend.

@irenepsmith - this is your #NameInLights


Irene and I go back a long way. Well over ten years in fact! I was working in the Obituary Department of the Times Herald-Record, a mid-sized daily newspaper when we first met. As a new hire in the department, part of my responsibility was to train her in the obit way. LOL

I have to tell you, Irene was way over-qualified for the job. Her heart is in writing and she helped the tech department more than once, including some really awesome programs that made the job a lot easier. Considering that we were using antiquated computers...um...yeah... I think to this day they are probably still creating Classified Pagination in Windows 95! No, I'm not kidding.

But I digress. She was the first person to actually introduce me to the world of #NaNoWriMo and I admit it took nearly a decade before I jumped in to participate. And now, thanks to her, I'm on my third year in a row and was accepted as a Municipal Liaison for the Florida:Elsewhere (online) chapter.

Thank you, Irene

for putting me on the path to writing on a consistent basis and finding the joy in it again!

If you haven't read any of Irene's posts, I recommend starting with her Re-Introduction post.

She also shares one of her flash fiction pieces, which her son and friend produced in a video production.

Bury the Hatchet

Visit her blog @irenepsmith and say hi.

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So you may be wondering... How does the art fit in?

The symbolism of the Water Lily

also known as the Lotus Flower

It is believed that water lilies symbolize rebirth and optimism, fertility, creation and sexuality. Don't blush, Irene! LOL

In ancient Egypt, the water lily was associated with the cycle of life; one creation story being how the Sun god, Ra, emerged from this beautiful flower.

There are different meanings connected to the various colors of the water lily.

White Lilies are thought to symbolize peace, purity, pleasure, enlightenment and modesty [citation]

In Asian cultures, Red Lilies mean universality because it blooms and fruits at the same time, where Purple Lilies represents mystic power. Pink and Blue Lilies are associated with knowledge.

Perhaps one of the reasons the water lily is so revered is the fact that it closes its petals at night and opens with the rays of the sun. It's no wonder why people associated it with the Sun god, for it is consistent like the sun.

Many brides include water lilies as modern interpretation claims it to be a symbol of a pure heart and soul. [citation]

If you knew Irene, you may agree that she is a giving and pure spirit, often giving too much of herself before she cares for herself. She is currently in the process of a metamorphosis; pursing a dream of writing. And while she closes up like the lotus flower in the night, she is open to new challenges. It's one of the things I truly admire about her.

And even though we have experienced months and years without communicating (hey, life happens!) - we have always remained ever-consistent in our friendship AND I am so very happy to see that she's joined Steemit!

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Here is the pencil sketch as I just began tracing the petals with a wide sharpie



And here I am holding the final piece

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• #NameInLights is an initiative started by @williambanks to highlight our followers in a positive way and friend-it-forward, building our audience and Steemit friends in a very organic way.

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Wall of Steemit love:

Name in peppers by @papa-pepper	Beautiful art by @poeticsnake
Name in silver by @neoxian	8bit avatar by @williambanks

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